


All I'll Ever Know

by sephmeadowes



Category: Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Human!Caroline, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-20
Updated: 2013-08-20
Packaged: 2017-12-24 03:00:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/934505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sephmeadowes/pseuds/sephmeadowes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Only one thing was for sure, 1864 sucked.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All I'll Ever Know

_You are everything I wanted_   
_The scars of all I'll ever know_   
_If I told you you were right_   
_Would you take my hand tonight?_   
_If I told you the reasons why_   
_Would you leave your life and ride?_

**\- Cary Brothers, Ride**

* * *

It was all Bonnie's fault. Caroline had been minding her own business, enjoying her beautiful life as a popular cheerleader with a troubled but loving quarterback boyfriend when all of a sudden Bonnie did a spell and she woke up in the not-so-old Salvatore mansion with nothing with her but Emily Bennett's witch's talisman. She didn't know what spell Bonnie did but she wanted it reversed _now_. She didn't want to spend any more time in ancient Mystic Falls with all these people who were dead in her time.

"Miss?" She turned around, almost giving herself whiplash to stare at the 1864 equivalent of Stefan Salvatore and she stared at the longer hair and funny clothes for a moment before wishing she would just faint right then and there.

She wasn't so lucky and with a silent prayer, she asked whatever deity up there to send her home.

She waited and nope, still there.

"Miss, is something the matter?" Stefan tried again, looking at her more worriedly right then. No doubt a bit confused at her modern clothes as well. Great.

She sighed. "I'm afraid I'm lost."

* * *

Caroline hated corsets with a passion. She just didn't understand why women wanted to torture themselves with this medieval devices meant to constrict their breathing and practically crush their ribs to their spine and probably end up causing paralysis or at the least asphyxiation. It was ridiculous really but Caroline didn't really have a choice but wear it under the pretty (but heavy and really hot) gowns they made her wear. The first time she dared to not wear the corset, all the maids had stared at her in abstract horror.

"Is something wrong here?" Damon asked, complete with the curly hair and girly shirts, appearing out of nowhere in the hallway and assessing the situation before him.

All the maids were staring pointedly at Caroline and her lack of a corset and Caroline resisted the urge to roll her eyes. This was ridiculous. She was not going to wear a corset. They could shove it up their asses for all she cared but she refused to wear one.

Damon looked at her thoughtfully and inquired. "Miss McIntyre?"

Caroline still wasn't used to her alias but she couldn't very well use 'Forbes' when her ancestor was busy running the town as sheriff, so it was her mother's maiden name then. She was lucky enough that Giuseppe Salvatore had a big heart when it came to lost orphan girls otherwise she would've had to camp it out in the streets with nothing on her but the set of clothes she'd been wearing at the time.

All right, they've been incredibly nice to her. She should stop acting like a spoiled brat now.

Turning to Damon, she mustered up a smile. "It's nothing…Mr. Salvatore."

Ugh, she would never get used to all these formalities.

And quietly with a parting smile to Damon and a look of defeat at the maids, she went back to her room to put on the corset.

Only one thing was for sure, 1864 sucked.

* * *

Giuseppe Salvatore liked her and she realized why when Stefan showed her a portrait of his deceased mother and realized that they'd had some of the same features with their blond hair and doll like features. Stefan and Damon had obviously taken after the dad more.

She took the Salvatore patriarch's kindness to her a blessing and she liked the older man enough too, especially when he thought her how to play croquet and let her do as she pleased, treating her as if he was her own daughter which she was probably just that at the time being.

Caroline squealed in joy and dropped her croquet mallet to the ground in her excitement. She resisted the urge to jump up and down. She'd probably trip over the hem of her gown again and land face first on the ground. That already happened that one time and all the Salvatore men couldn't stop their laughing long enough to help her up. Her pride was still largely bruised.

"I win again!" The blond grinned happily at Giuseppe who smiled pleasantly in return. She was starting to think the older man was letting her win all the time but she let it slide. She liked winning.

The older man was about to say something when the Salvatore brothers exited the house, a battered pigskin football in Damon's hands and they watched in interest as Damon started to teach Stefan how to play. Caroline shook her head as she watched the brothers toss the football around. She could never seem to escape that stupid sport.

Picking up her mallet of the ground, she turned to the Giuseppe and asked for another game.

* * *

Caroline found that there wasn't much to do in Mystic Falls during this time. Sure there was the war and everything but it hadn't outright reached the town yet and people were still pretty calm about it. All women could seemingly do these days was walk, shop and gossip. And since Caroline knew no one in town and at the risk of revealing something about the future to them, she'd opted to just stay near the Salvatore estate.

It was a nice place and she often went on walks by herself and enjoyed the view and fresh, unpolluted air. Sometimes, she'd get Stefan to go with her, he'd been feeling quite lonely ever since Damon left to go on duty again and he seemed to enjoy her company well enough.

This Stefan was a lot shyer than modern Stefan and Caroline spent most of the time filling the silence with her chatter with him either smiling or nodding at what she said. But there were the rare times, he'd speak as well and he was eloquent and intelligent as he discussed with her a wide range of topics from philosophy to war politics.

It was almost a bit refreshing especially since the boys in her time only talked about sports and girls. But not Stefan, he was deep, really deep and at times she had a hard time understanding just how abstract his ideas were but she didn't mind and he didn't either.

* * *

Today, she'd decided to go on a picnic. So she asked one of the maids to fix her a basket with some of her and Stefan's favorite foods and she went to search for the younger Salvatore brother. She found him in the library again, one of his favorite haunts, writing in his diary that she swore she'd steal one of these days and read.

"Am I in there?" She asked conversationally and he looked up in surprise but quickly stood up from the lounge chair and bowed at her in greeting. She gave the customary curtsy and when the formalities were done, she crossed the length of the room to stand beside him.

She smiled at him hopefully. "I planned a picnic for us. Wanna come?"

He nodded good-naturedly and asked her to go ahead. He had to hide his diary after all.

* * *

"Do you plan on getting married?" Stefan asked her as they laid about on the a table cloth the maids had lent her.

She almost choked on the strawberry she was eating and he apologized at being so forward.

"It's all right," She reassured him and then asked. "Why are you asking?"

He smiled at her kindly. "Well, Miss McIntyre, you are a beautiful woman. I just wondered if you already have beau you are promised to."

Well, there was Matt but she didn't plan marrying him any time soon.

She shook her head vehemently. "Not me. I don't plan on marrying so young."

"Many women today marry much younger." He explained.

"Yeah but I'm not like most women here."

She was born in the time of stylish jeans, rock band music and feminism for one.

"You can say that again." A familiar voice said and they both turned in surprise to see Damon, dressed in his Confederate uniform, walking towards them. Stefan quickly got up and enveloped his brother in a warm hug.

The younger Salvatore was obviously happy to see Damon. "How come you did not tell us you were coming back early?"

Damon shrugged, smile wide. "I apologize. I got…a temporary leave."

Something in his tone told Caroline he was lying. If he wasn't given a leave then that meant...he left the army. She grimaced as she realized just how unhappy Giuseppe would be at his eldest son and she made a mental note to not be in the room when that happened.

"Ah, Miss McIntyre," Damon greeted her happily. "How I have missed seeing your lovely face."

She inwardly rolled her eyes. Such a charmer.

"Mister Salvatore," She greeted back and stood up, curtsying as he bowed back at her. She was getting better at the formalities. Her curtsy was nearly perfect by then.

"How have you been, Miss?" He asked her, blue eyes twinkling like he was thinking something wicked. It echoed of the Damon she knew in her time.

A little breathlessly she replied. "Just wonderful,"

* * *

Caroline stayed in the library as Damon and Giuseppe argued, pretending to be interested in Emily Bronte as the shouting escalated. Stefan was in there too trying to play mediator but she guessed he was failing because the shouting seemed to intensify as time passed. It was times like this that Caroline would've turned on the sound system to full blast to block it all out. But this was 1864 and the closest thing they had was a song bird.

A little while later, Damon finally exited the room and appeared in the library, looking exhausted. She watched him warily as he paced the length of the room, running his hands through his curly hair and sighing ever so often. She didn't say anything as he continued to wear out the floors and went back to reading when he didn't seem ready to stop moving.

She was still very much aware of his actions and peeked up from the book here and there until he finally stopped and looked at her, eyes conflicted. "Miss Macintyre, would you care for a walk?"

She put away her book and stood up. "I thought you'd never ask."

* * *

The walk through the gardens was quiet for the first few moments. Caroline did not know how to start the conversation and Damon seemed to content to brood over his argument with his father. They kept it up until Caroline couldn't handle the silence anymore. She never could.

"You're not the only one, you know."

He looked at her confusedly. "What do you mean, Miss?"

"I mean, not the first person to disappoint their parents." Inwardly, she sighed and then continued. "You have no idea just how many times I disappointed my mom – my mother. Plenty of times."

It was true Liz Forbes had always had a hard time understanding her daughter. They were too different and there were times Caroline felt every single thing she did was wrong and after a while had stopped trying to please her mother like she used to as a child and just did whatever she wanted, regardless of what her mother thought. But deep inside, Caroline knew she still cared what her mom thought and a part of her still tried to strive and make her mother proud, no matter what a lost cause it seemed.

"My father has never been happy with me," Damon explained. "Stefan is the perfect son. Meanwhile, I disobey his wishes and bring shame to the family name."

Caroline frowned at the comparison. "You don't need to compare yourself to Stefan. You're two very different people. And besides," She smiled at him. "You have your own good qualities as well."

"Such as?"

She shook her head at him ruefully, noting that oh-so-wicked twinkle in his eyes. "And now you're just fishing for a compliment."

"Could you blame a man for wanting to stroke his ego?"

"Well, Mr. Salvatore, you might have to find someone else to do that because I don't plan to."

"I don't really plan to. I am quite content with you, Miss McIntyre."

They were _flirting_. Downright flirting with each other, albeit 1864 style with all the formalities but she was flirting with the human version of her ex-boyfriend and _enjoying_ it. She should find this bizarre but she really couldn't get herself to stop liking it.

* * *

That evening, Caroline dressed for dinner but found none of the Salvatore men in the dining room. This was odd since there was already food on the table and dinner was always punctual in the Salvatore home.

She stopped one of the servants to ask where the men were and she replied that they were in Giuseppe's study. She made her way to where she knew the study was and was about to knock when it opened and Stefan stepped out into the hallway.

The younger Salvatore looked surprised to see her but quickly smiled in greeting. "Miss McIntyre, what are you doing here?"

"I was in the dining room for dinner and no one was there, so…" She trailed off.

Stefan looked apologetic. "Pardon our tardiness, Miss. Father and Damon are having a bit of a discussion."

She sighed. "Is it about the Confederacy again?"

"Actually, Miss…" Stefan smiled almost slyly. "Damon is asking permission for something else entirely."

She stared at him questioningly. "And that is?"

What was with the suspense? It was unwarranted.

Stefan inclined his head to the side and slowly answered. "He is asking permission to court you, Miss McIntyre."

She gaped at him in disbelief. "W-What?"

Not a second later, the study's door opened and Damon stepped out, surprised to see her but was also glad. His eyebrows furrowed when he noticed the panic in her eyes and turned to his brother, eyes narrowed. "Must you take away my surprise, Stefan?"

* * *

Dinner had been an uncomfortable affair. Caroline had spent the majority of it not making contact with any of the men and trying to focus on her dinner instead. She wanted nothing better to do than to eat her dinner quickly and go back up to her room where she could obsess over the fact that things were going off book and Damon was getting a serious interest in her if there was parental permission involved.

Why did Damon want to court her anyway? Didn't he have that whole Katherine/Elena obsession going on? What made him decide to like her? Was it because she was the girl he'd been spending the most time with? If that was the case then he better visit town more often and talk with the women there who was actually from this time-line!

"Miss McIntyre?" Giuseppe called her name, worry and genuine concern in his voice that she also saw in his blue eyes, Damon's eyes she realized. He must've noticed how distracted she was. "Are you not feeling well?"

"Not really, Sir." She answered meekly. "If you don't mind, I'd like to retire for the night."

He looked more concerned but agreed. "Of course. Damon will escort you up, just in case."

"No!" She almost yelped and the men stared at her in surprise. She blushed in embarrassment and continued in a lower volume. "I can handle myself, Sir. Thank you for the concern."

Standing up, she resisted the urge to virtually run out of the dining room and instead took every painfully slow step out of the ballroom, feeling Damon's blue gaze burning into her back.

She needed to find a way home, quickly. Before it was too late and she'd be stuck there forever.


End file.
